His classmates called him "Zip" which later become ironically the same nickname of FBI Special Agent John Connolly who would later successfully prosecute him for his criminal activities.

In 1954, Ilario attended his old friend Larry's wedding, pressed a $100 bill in his hand and said, "Buy yourself a necktie kid."

In 1949, Zannino married Isabel Tawa (1924–2011), who worked as a saleswoman at Gilchrist's department store and later owned and managed properties in South Boston.

[3] In a 1981 conversation with Donato "Danny" Angiulo, which was covertly recorded by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Zannino agreed that a Mafioso's wife is "not supposed to know what you do for a living" and claimed that his wife knew only that he had a secret hiding place in his house, saying: "After all, Danny, when you got three million ... dollars you can’t be too secretive.

[5] Later that year, Soroko was convicted in state court of the March 24, 1966 robbery of Cortell's jewelry store in Boston, which brought the stolen merchandise into his possession.

[7] Zannino was also a close associate of Stephen "The Rifleman" Flemmi, an FBI informant who was connected with Italian organized crime in Boston's North End as well as the Winter Hill Gang, an Irish mob group in Somerville.

On February 11, 1976, Barboza was shotgunned to death from a passing van as he approached his parked car after leaving Chalmas' apartment in the Sunset District of San Francisco.

[citation needed] The identity of Barboza's killers remained unknown until Zannino was secretly recorded by the FBI talking about the murder in 1981.

During a conversation with two Patriarca soldati ("soldiers"), he explained his decision to recommend Russo for a promotion, describing him as "a very brilliant guy, who stepped right out with a carbine" during the Barboza murder.

With court approval, agents picked the locks early in the morning and planted covert listening devices that produced over 800 hours of recordings.

[9] Zannino later claimed in court after being convicted that he was drunk on red wine at the time he was taped, stating in the recording: "I want to kill Harvey Cohen very shortly".

As a result of the three-year FBI investigation, Zannino was among seven men, also including Samuel Granito and five of the Angiulo brothers, who were indicted by a grand jury on charges of racketeering, illegal gambling, loansharking, and murder on September 20, 1983.

[11] Zannino repeatedly asserted that he was unfit to stand trial due to heart problems, a claim that was overruled by federal judges.